The Open Door
by Ebony Dark'ness
Summary: My Immortal prequel.
1. Chapter 1

I am 17-year-old seventh year student Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way, the daughter of expatriate American businesswoman Tara Gilesbie and pretentious globe-trotting British consultant Justin Way. I have very pale skin and black hair with purple streaks and red tips. I'm a Goth! I left my home in Dubai to go to magic school in Hogwarts, England. I was glad to finally be a witch. Up until then, I had only gone to muggle schools that were full of preps.

On September the 1st I flew from Dubai to London and then took a train from King's Cross Station up to Hogsmeade, a village near the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. My new school would be a lot different than my old one in hot, preppy Dubai. For one thing the weather suited my mood better most days. It was also awesome that I would learn magic.

That night we had a feast in the Great Hall and a sorting ceremony. I was sorted into Slytherin, the goth/punk house. The other houses were Gryffindor (for posers), Hufflepuff (for preps) and Ravenclaw (for nerds). My other complaint about the school so far was that the headmaster Dumbledore was a prep. He was wearing a polo shirt from American Eagle Outfitters.

When the meal was done I climbed up the stairs to the sixth floor. I knocked on the door to my dorm room—numbered 666, of course—to see someone gasp worthy answer it. My roommate was goth girl with pink-streaked black hair. She was awesome!

"Hi, my name is Willow," she introduced herself. "You're Ebony, right?"

"Yes I am."

We conversed through the night. I figured out we had similar interests.

On the first day of classes I learned to navigate through the maze-like school. I went through my work quite easily. I wasn't sure why, but I was a real genius even though I was six years behind everybody for starting school in my last year. The only thing I sucked at was flying with a broomstick, but I would eventually get the hang of it.

I met several interesting classmates and sat with them at lunch. I was surprised to know there were even more Goths here! But some of them were in the poser house Gryffindor.

"Let's all introduce ourselves to Ebony! I'm Pansy Parkinson," welcomed the pug-faced girl.

"I'm Harry Potter. You might now me as the boy who lived. I'm also a vampire. You can call me that too." This one, who I did recognize but can't put a finger on it, wore glasses. He had a lighting-shaped scar on his forehead.

When I turned my attention to another table, Willow took note of my interest and introduced me to the students sitting there. "The people at that table are a part of the Malfoy family, even though only one of them is an actual son of Mr. Lucius Malfoy. That's Ginny Weasley and Neville Longbottom," she motioned at one of the couples. She had red hair. He had a round face.

"And that's Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley." She pointed at the bushy-haired brunette and redhead boy. The latter of the pair was probably related to the copper-haired girl; I could tell even if I didn't know their last names. "The lonely one is Draco. He's single, but that doesn't matter; he's rich. His dad works at St. Mungo's Hospital." I could tell she meant the boy with a pointed chin and silver blond hair.

I got to sit next to that Draco boy in biology class. The teacher was Professor Lupin. My lab partner kept staring at me for some reason during the entire duration of the class. That was awesome, but I didn't know why he acted that way. I spent the rest of my day trying to figure it out.

I experienced plenty of excitement on my second day at school.

Harry was very friendly, but one of my teachers—Snape—seemed to like me that way too. I was not interested in either of them. I would have to do something about that.

My new friends were very cool people I wished I could have met earlier. Their interests were very similar to mine. I felt as if I belonged here. There weren't many preps, either. My Divinations teacher Trelawny was young for a teacher and a really cool Goth. I quickly learned how to fly with the black broom I received for flying class.

There was something wrong about this day, however: Draco Malfoy wasn't at school. I had very little idea why. Maybe he was a prep—that was it! I felt stupid for not figuring this out earlier. He had blond hair, for goodness's sake.

At the end of the day I spotted some of the Gryffindor people Willow introduced me to. I hadn't talked to any of those awesome, mysterious students yet but I would soon.

After school, I quickly did my homework in my dorm room and listened to music. Again I thought about how great my new school was. Dinner was delicious. I ate a salad with Willow. During the meal I decided to speak about something on my mind.

"Tell me about Draco. He wasn't in class today," I told Willow.

"He's a great guy, but a bit withdrawn," she brought up.

"Oh," I replied. I tried to comprehend that. Then we returned to our dorm and slept.

I still didn't know what was up with Draco when the weekend came. He still wasn't in class. I tried to convince myself that I would hate him if I knew him, but the crowd he belonged to didn't jive with that theory.

I spent the weekend doing homework and chatting with Willow. I went to the library to check out some fascinating vampire books (I am one). Maybe I could go out to Hogsmeade to look around some of the stores. I would also like to browse through the racks of Hot Topic sometime soon.


	2. Chapter 2

On Monday Draco finally came back. He made the first move and greeted me in class.

"Hello." He was smiling.

"Hi," I responded shyly.

"Do you, um…like working with potions?" he hesitated as he thought of a conversation topic. I looked at his face. He may have been blond, but he was beautiful.

"Yeah, sure," I answered.

"What do you think about this school?" he asked.

"It's so awesome. I've met so many Goths and hardly any preps," I said.

"I'm glad you've joined us. Enjoy your first and last year as a witch student," he said.

"I sure hope I will," I acknowledged.

When the lesson ended I went to my shared room. I thought about Draco the entire night.

When I woke up I discovered that it sure was bright outside. Ew, sun. I sluggishly got up to go to school. As I was making my way to class, I could recognize some of the people I liked. I also noticed Draco staring at me. Oh no, ferret face was stalking me now.

All of a sudden I saw my Transformation Professor Hargrid with his wand pointed at me!

"Incarcerous!" the teacher yelled.

Draco knocked me to the ground, out of the way of Hargrid's imprisoning spell. What did the spell do? And why did Draco push me out of its way?

The next thing I knew was that I had been teleported to the hospital wing.

"Sorry if I had frightened you, my dear girl," Hargrid apologized. "I was under the impression you were in danger."

"Shut up!" Draco told him.

I didn't have any actual reason to be in the hospital. It wasn't that I was injured or anything.

"Okay now, Ebony, you can go to your dorm now," said the nurse.

"What happened?" I asked Draco.

"Nothing," he insisted shyly.

"What did the spell do?" I asked.

"I don't know," he answered.

"Yeah right." I stormed off angrily to my room.

I was glad to have my space. But then someone knocked on my door. I answered it. It was my Hair of Magical Magic Creatures teacher Professor McGonagall.

"Go back to your old place. We don't want you here," she demanded.

"No, I am staying," I replied.

She yelled "ARGH!" and sauntered away.

When I went to sleep, I dreamed about Draco. In my dream we were in the dark. His skin was so pale and he was so sexy.

The next day I got a lot of the attention because of the incident. Hargrid was probably interested in me. There were three males in the school who really liked me so far: Harry, Snape and Hargrid. But no one seemed to pay attention to Draco. I mean, he saved me! People act as if he was never involved. I developed an awareness of Draco that no one else seemed to have. Although at the hospital he didn't tell me what happened, I felt so grateful for his action.

"Hi," I greeted him in biology.

He just stared at me like he did every class.

Maybe he regretted pushing me away from the spell. But still, I had no idea how he felt. He would always ignore or refuse to talk to me. I tried to keep an eye on him out of curiosity. This tension between us made me miserable.

"We don't like you," McGonagall told me once in front of her class. Apparently she didn't like me at all.

As my concentration on Draco faded, I noticed that Harry was glad.

"Hi," he said. It was biology. He was sitting on my desk.

"Hi Harry," I answered.

"You can call me Vampire," he said.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because I love the taste of human blood." He giggled.

A few days later, Willow and I had a talk in our room one morning.

"There's this dance coming up. Maybe you should invite Harry," she suggested.

"I don't think so. I'm not interested in him that way. Besides, I heard that all they play at these stupid dances are preppy songs," I expressed.

"Well I really want to go. You should come with me."

"Oh ok," I accepted, having no idea what I was doing.

At the start of biology class Vampire came to my table. We talked about the dance.

"Willow asked me out. I told her I had to think about it," he informed me.

"That's nice," I responded.

"But I was hoping you would ask me."

"You should go with Willow."

"Are you going with someone else? Like Draco?"

I turned my head around to see Draco on his chair. He was looking at us and listening intently. "No, I might be going out of town," I made up an excuse. Vampire angrily left my table at that.

Suddenly, the teacher asked a question. "Mr. Malfoy, name one of the Unforgivable Curses," demanded Lupin.

Draco's staring session paused as he answered "the Killing Curse."

"Yes."

At the end of the lesson, Draco spoke to me for the first time in a long time.

"Sorry for not speaking to you," he apologized.

"Um, that's fine," I responded.

"It would be best if we were not friends."

"I know you regret having saved me from the spell."

"No! You don't understand!"

I stormed out of the room, but unfortunately I dropped my books. Draco picked them up and handed them to me.

When school was over, I headed for my room. Snape was waiting for me there.

"Can I go to the dance with you?" he asked. I was surprised.

"No, I might be going away to London."

"We could go to another dance together," he suggested.

"Yeah, sure, whatever." I regretted the encouragement as soon as I said it.

As Snape left me, I heard Draco chuckle. He was in a corner, staring at me. Then Hargrid came up to me.

"I want you to go to the dance with me," he said. "I heard you had turned down Snape and Harry."

"Sorry, but no thanks."

"Well, there are still more dances coming up. We could go to those ones."

As Hargrid left, I noticed Draco still watching me. He was smirking.


	3. Chapter 3

I opened the door to my room and walked in.

"Harry had agreed to go to the dance with me," Willow informed me as soon as I closed the door.

"Both Snape and Hargrid asked me out, but I don't want to go with either of them. They should go with people their own age!" I complained.

"Yeah, totally," she agreed.

I thought about Draco and his strange behaviour. Maybe he was aware I felt—I don't know, intimidated?—by him. I should leave him alone.

I talked to Dumbledore at dinner. "I'm planning on going to London on the night of the dance," I told him.

"You might get lost," he said, worried. "You should go with a friend."

"Fine. I will."

The following day at school, I tried to stray as far away from Draco as I could. But he appeared out of the blue at times.

"I know that Hargrid asked you to the dance yesterday," he informed me during breakfast.

He knew because he was spying me yesterday afternoon. "Stop following me!" I demanded.

"I can go on your trip to London with you," he offered.

"Huh? I thought you didn't want to be my friend," I reminded him.

"Actually I do, but I just don't think it's a good idea."

I nodded impatiently.

"Just stay away from me."

What? He wanted to be my friend and he was telling me to stay away? This guy must have been a nutcase.

During lunch Draco sat apart from his friends and motioned for me to join him.

"I'm not good for you," he insisted, "but I won't try to stay away from you anymore."

"Uh huh," I urged him to continue.

"In general, I prefer to hang around with…pure people, but you are far from that. I can't understand it."

"Oh."

"I'm ditching Biology class today."

"Well have fun at that." I left for my classroom as he sauntered off somewhere.

When I got to Biology class, I discovered that the lesson pertained to blood purity. This was a problem because I didn't want anyone to know I was actually born a muggle and then for no reason I transformed into a witch and a vampire just this summer. I decided to copy Draco and skip class instead. Vampire came along with me. When we were in the halls, Draco appeared out of nowhere. Vampire looked pissed.

"She's coming with me," Draco told Vampire. I followed Draco's order and ran away with him to the dungeon, looking back at the other boy's depressed red eyes.

"MCR is awesome," Draco brought up.

"OMG totally! Gerard is so sexy," I responded.

"So, what brought you to Hogwarts?"

"The desire to learn magic. But I was born a muggle."

He cringed. "I could tell. I'm a pureblood."

"That's nice. Well some of the kids are going to the lake tomorrow. Do you want to come?"

"No way! Vampire wouldn't like being at the same place as me. I'm going to be busy, too, camping with Dracula, or Neville Longbottom, as you know him."

"Have fun at camp."

Although I knew he was away, I still found myself looking for Draco at lunch the next day. I encountered this prep named Britney.

"Ebony's a bitch," I heard her tell Vampire. They were close to each other, obviously sharing a lot of intimacy.

That night I decided to ask Dumbledore about why Draco and Neville were going camping.

"Why are Draco and Neville going camping?" I asked.

"I have no idea."

Well, that sure was an effective answer.

On Saturday I went on the previously arranged day trip to the Lake with a group from school. I was surprised to see my biology teacher Professor Lupin there.

"Hi, I'm Tom Riddle," said one of the boys I didn't know.

"Hi my name is Ebony Dark'ness Dementia Raven Way." We shook hands.

"Do you know anyone named Malfoy?" he asked.

"Yeah, Draco Malfoy," I answered.

"He isn't allowed to come to the lake."

"Why?"

"We, members of the Order of the Phoenix, own this land. Our intentions are to prevent Lord Voldemort from carrying out his plans for world conquest. Our enemies are the Death Eaters. They've agreed to stay off our property. You may know some of these bloodsuckers by their code names: Darkness is Ginny, Dracula is Neville, B'loody Mary is Hermione, and Diablo is Ron. Draco is a member but never had a moniker because the name is father gave him is already sinister enough. Potter can't decide between us or them. He has his handle picked out just in case he gets accepted: Vampire. But we don't want him with us. You'll eventually see why.

"By the way, I'm not so keen on dealing with these kids. You see, I'm from another time. I was a Death Eater when I was their age. You can call me Satan. Any questions?"

I tried hard to disguise my shock. "Did you say bloodsuckers?"

"Yes. All Death Eaters are vampires."

"What about my dorm mate Willow? Or my classmate Pansy?"

"Willow is just a goth. She was never a Death Eater or vampire—just a pureblood. When she was two, her parents had committed suicide by slitting their wrists. She was adopted when she was five, but all was not well. Her new life was hell. She was constantly abused, beaten and raped by her new adopted parents. Every night, she would sit down and cry in her bed. Even at school, she was always being bullied. Her life was totally fucked up and she couldn't stand it. When she was eleven, she kept getting mail and stuff from Hogwarts but her adopted parents wouldn't let her go. Finally, at fourteen, she was forced to run away, escaping from the preps at Los Angeles High School and finding a safe haven here at Hogwarts.

"Though Pansy was a past love interest of Draco, they broke up on terrible terms."

"That's interesting," I commented.

I went home with more questions in my head than answers.


	4. Chapter 4

When I fell asleep that night I had a strange dream. I was in the Forbidden Forest near the Lake. I tried to find a way out. Suddenly Tom appeared. He grabbed me.

"Run!" Tom exclaimed.

I ignored him and continued trying to find a way out.

"Ebony!" called another voice. I recognized it as Vampire's.

Tom transformed into a snake and started to slither around.

"Run!" screamed Vampire.

Out of nowhere, Draco came to me with his pointed vampire teeth. "Come with me," he said. Just as I moved toward him the snake jumped up between us, his fangs aiming at Draco's neck.

I awoke from the dream, screaming. Luckily, it was a quiet scream, so Willow didn't appear to be woken up. It was 6:06am. I was unable to go back to sleep, so I turned on my laptop. I looked up pictures of vampires. They were so sexy. I was so excited to know Draco was one of them, like me.

I left to take a walk in the woods. I thought about what Tom told me yesterday. Some students at this school were certainly remarkable. They weren't just Goths, they were vampires! I wondered whether to take Draco's advice to be smart and avoid him, or to let things go on as they had been because Draco was clearly awesome. I chose the latter because I was completely drawn to Draco. I realized in my dream I screamed out of fear for Draco's safety when the snake attacked.

I walked back once I was relieved that I made a decision about my relationship with Draco.

When I got up for school on Monday it was bright and sunny, to my despair. I ran into Vampire in the morning.

"Want to go out?" he asked.

"I'm not interested in you," I rejected him, "but I think Willow is." I went on with my day.

At lunch I looked for Draco around the school, but he wasn't there. In fact, I noticed that none of the Malfoys were.

When the day was over, Willow revealed something spectacular.

"Harry asked me out to dinner," she announced. "But we should go out soon too—maybe shopping in Hogsmeade tomorrow?"

"That's great—both your date with Harry and us going shopping. Let's do it."

I read a vampire book to make the afternoon pass faster. It was pretty effective, as I fell asleep after just a few paragraphs.

The next day at school the weather was sunny and the Malfoys were absent again. Right after school I met up with Willow and Pansy so we could go dress shopping in Hogsmeade. We walked over to one of the clothing stores there.

"Hargrid said he's taking you to the Yule Ball," Willow brought up while she was changing in a stall.

"OMG he's such a pedo!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah!" she agreed. "Maybe that's why Britney doesn't like you. She has pretty strong feelings for her Transformation teacher."

"Is it normal for the Malfoys to be out of school a lot?" I asked.

"Yeah, I heard it's a vampire thing."

Willow and Pansy both came out of their dressing rooms. Willow was wearing a black corset dress. Pansy was wearing a long black draping one. They looked so pretty. They brought their new clothes to the shopkeeper and bought them.

"I'm going to look for a bookshop," I told the girls as we exited the store.

"Ok. See you at the Three Broomsticks," Willow said.

As I tried to look for a bookstore I got lost. Trying to find my way back to the others, I was cornered by a group of men who have herded me into a deserted street. I wondered what they were after.

Before either I could scream, or the men can attack, a broom raced to my general direction, stopping just in front of me. It was Draco. I jumped on the broom. Draco flew away from the street and out of Hogsmeade. He appeared to be struggling to contain his anger.

"Say anything to distract me," he said.

"Hargrid said he's going to take me to the Yule Ball. I think I should use on him whatever spell he tried to use on me. Then he probably wouldn't bother me anymore."

"I'd heard about what he had been saying." He sighed. "I sometimes have a problem with my temper. It wouldn't have been helpful for me to hunt down the men who were about to attack you."

"Willow and Pansy will be worried about me. I'm supposed to meet them at the Three Broomsticks."

Draco flew me there.

"I'll take you out for dinner," he offered.

"Oh ok," I accepted.

Willow and Pansy came out of the restaurant. They were shocked to see me with Draco.

"I'll fly Ebony home," he said to them.

"Bye Ebony," said the girls.

"Bye guys," I replied. They left.

When Draco and I entered the restaurant we chose to sit at a private table.

"You dazzle people," I commented.

"Do I dazzle you?" he asked.

"You do," I admitted.

The waitress came to serve us. She appeared to be dazzled too.

"What can I get you two?" she asked.

"An orange juice and a chicken soup, please," he ordered. "And you?" he asked me.

"Whatever he's having," I told our attendant.

Our server left and returned quickly with our drinks.

"You look cold," Draco said concernedly.

"I'm fine," I said. But I was shivering.

He gave me his jacket to wear. It smelled amazing.

"I'm really fine," I maintained, "and I feel safe with you."

"Yeah right," he said.

"Sometimes your eyes are red," I commented, "when you're in a good mood. When you're in a bad mood your eyes are blue. I think I know why—I have a theory. I'll explain it to you later as long as you answer a few questions first."

"Sure," he agreed.

Our food arrived. I scooped up some soup with my spoon and began to eat my supper.


	5. Chapter 5

"Why are you in Hogsmeade?" I asked, gobbling down my chicken soup.

"I'm not telling you," he refused.

"Okay then. Next question: why do you stalk me?"

"I'll get to that after this explanation. First, I must tell you that my family believes in blood purity and expects me to do so too," he admitted. "I generally bear respect for purebloods and hatred for anything else. But you are not pure and I am so drawn to you. That's why I tail you around: to see why I am so attracted to a filthy muggle-born."

I nodded, searching for a question to satisfy a part of my curiosity with Draco.

"How did you always know where to find me?" I persuaded him to explain.

"I want you to be safe so I follow you around."

"Maybe, since the incident with Hargrid's spell, you've been interfering with fate. Whatever his curse—or whatever it was—did, it should have had its effects on me."

"Remember the first time we met? Terrible things could have happened." Um, what? "Nothing bad has happened to you since you came here and it's all because of me," he boasted.

"How were you able to find me as the men were about to attack?" I asked.

"I hath telekinesis but I didn't read your mind—I couldn't! I read Willow's. Then I found you. It was so hard to leave those men alive. I couldn't let you go back to the castle with the girls."

After we finished our meal we left the restaurant. We didn't have any physical contact. I was saddened because Willow and Vampire were becoming so intimate in their romantic relationship.

"It's your turn to talk, as you promised, about your theory," Draco told me as we headed out of Hogsmeade on his broomstick.

Draco and I flew home to Hogwarts. "You can read minds? Like Voldemort could? That's cool," I commented.

"Yeah, he passed it on to me when I got my Dork Mark. But I can only hear the thoughts of those who were born wizards or witches."

"That explains why you can't hear mine," I realized.

"Do you have any more theories as to why I have special abilities?"

"I have one, but I am afraid to say it in case it makes you angry."

"Tell me," he encouraged.

"I had a discussion with Tom Riddle. He said you are a vampire and a Death Eater."

His facial expression froze. "Have you told anyone else of this theory?"

"No, in fact I am a vampire. Just not a Death Eater. It doesn't matter to me if you are something more than a wizard."

"I can't believe my ears. It doesn't matter to you that I am a monster who works for the Dark Lord?"

"How old are you?"

"17; my birthday is June 5th."

"When did you become a Death Eater?"

"About a year ago."

"You see, I'm a vampire too. I hate the sun, but I could go out in it sometimes. I sleep in a coffin. The blood I drink mostly comes from breweries, but I bite people too. I can also eat human food. I especially love Count Chocola cereal."

"Me too! We're the same in many ways…but I'm more dangerous, especially to you. It's a mistake for me to be close to you. You're different than most people and definitely a magnet for trouble. You don't react to things the way most people do."

We were at the castle now. I gave Draco his jacket back once we came inside.

"Goodbye," I said once we were in the Slytherin common room.

"See you tomorrow," he said and reluctantly left.

I opened the door of my room.

"You're home much earlier than I expected," Willow remarked. I realized that was due to Draco's fast flying. "I'm curious about your relationship with Draco."

"I don't want to talk. I'm exhausted."

I climbed in my coffin and closed the door. I thought about the information I learned or realized today: that Draco was a vampire, that there was a part of him that loved me and that I was in love with him.

The morning after I was convinced the previous night was only a dream. But I remembered Draco's smell, so I believed it had to have been real.

I was amazed to find Draco waiting for me at a breakfast table. He smelled as nice as I remembered.

"Your reactions to my revelations bother me. You take everything too calmly," he mentioned.

I moved closer to him even though I was afraid he would not want me to.

Willow came to our table. She giggled when she saw us so close together.

"See you in Deviations." She walked away.

He said, "She wants to know if we're dating and how you feel about me. You should say that we are going out. I'll be listening for both of your interactions."

When I got into Deviations with Willow, I was prepared but reluctant to talk to her about my romantic situation.

"Are you going out with Draco?" she asked.

"Yes. He took me for dinner and flew me home last night. We might go on a day trip to London together."

She was definitely pleased with our plans. "Have you kissed?"

"No. It doesn't really seem like he's going to. I find it difficult to know whether he really likes me. He's always so cryptic. There's more to him than just good looks. I like him too much, probably more than he likes me, but I feel as if that's unavoidable."

Draco was waiting for me by the door after the lesson.

"I'm bothered by your presumption that you like me more than I like you. You're wrong; I care for you more."

"I see myself as too untalented for someone like you to really like, particularly someone as attractive as you are."

We went to lunch together. In the Great Hall he piled a tray full of food for both of us.


	6. Chapter 6

"The other boys and even teachers have lusted for you since your first day. You're the opposite of ordinary. I am willing hurt myself to prevent you being hurt," Draco said. We were having lunch in the Great Hall.

"Thanks for letting me know."

"Do you have to go away this Saturday?"

"We can do something else if you want."

"We should go somewhere private," he suggested. "You decide. Just don't forget to tell Dumbledore you're going with me."

"How was your camping trip?"

"It was an uneventful checkup with the Dark Lord. He calls for contact every so often."

I listened calmly. "Can I come with you to the next one?"

He was shocked. "Sorry, but no. I'll tell you why later."

The bell rang for our next lesson. It seemed like such a short while. I guess I lost track of time when I was with Draco.

We were so excited when we made it to biology class but avoided being too close, as it would attract unwanted attention. After that class I went to the Quidditch Field for flying lessons. I was Vampire's partner for a quidditch game. I did poorly as usual.

"Willow told me Draco and you are a couple," Vampire brought up. Ugh, bigmouth girl. "Let me make this clear: I don't like him, so it would be in my best interest for you to stay away from that bastard."

When school was over Draco and I reunited in the Slytherin common room. "I was spying on you while you were in flying class," he told me.

I was furious. "Don't do anything like that again."

"Okay. I promise. And now would be a good time to tell you why you can never visit Voldemort with me. He has a strong urge to kill all non-purebloods. I want you to be safe. And by the way, tomorrow will be my day to ask you questions."

On Thursday, Draco questioned me every free moment. He got some predictable answers.

"What are your interests?" he asked. We were in a mostly deserted Great Hall.

"Blood, death, Goths, black, Satanism, Stan, music, hot topic, and vampires."

"Me too. What music do you like?"

"MCR, Good Charlotte, Linkin Pork, blink 182, Evanescence, The Used, Fall Out Boy, Marilyn Manson, Nirvana, Akon, and lots of other bands. I'll list them later!"

"I like those bands too. What movies do you like?"

"Corpse Bird, Shark Attack 2, Dracula 200, Underworld 1 and 2, Blade, Nightmare Before Christmas, Alone in the Dark, Life on the Murder Scene, the Ring, the Exorcise: the Beginning, The Omen, The Grudge, and Jeepers Creepers. Horror rocks!"

"I like those movies too. What TV shows do you watch?"

"The OC, Buffy, SpongeBob SquarePants—just kidding, TRL, and Meet the Barkers."

"I watch those shows too. What books do you like to read?"

"Harry Potter, His Dark Materials, Darren Shan, Gossip Girl—but the characters suck, they are all preps—and Lord of the Rings."

"I've read those books too! They rock. Who are your heroes?"

"Gerard Way! He, like, totally saved my life. He is the smexiest guy ever. MCR rocks 666. Satan forever. I love you guys, rock on."

"They're my heroes too. What's your favourite gemstone?"

"Ruby."

"Why?"

"It's the colour of your eyes when you're in a good mood."

Cornelia Fuck and Tom Riddle walked by. Draco seemed upset by their presence. The two weren't particularly fond of Draco, either. They met up with Dumbledore for a discussion. Tom sat next to me.

"Cornelia hates Draco for being a Death Eater," Tom filled me in.

I didn't pay attention to the rest of the short meeting.

"Take care," Cornelia told me as they left.

The following day Draco continued to ask me numerous questions, focusing in particular on people.

"I'm going to be ditching afterwards to go hunting with B'loody Mary," he informed me at lunch. "She's the most supportive of our family. The rest of them are incredulous. They can't understand why I'm unable to leave you alone."

"I agree."

"You don't see yourself very clearly. I find you intriguing. You never do what I expect. You take me by surprise."

Rather than pleasing me, his words made me feel embarrassed and dissatisfied. I felt that he viewed me more as an experiment, although as I thought about this I realized it was to be expected. I continued view of myself as uninteresting and unattractive, struggling to accept that someone like Draco could possibly be genuinely attracted to me.

Catching the eye of Darkness, I was shocked at the intensity of her glare and the animosity held within it.

"Darkness is concerned because I'm not the only one who would be in danger if things were to end badly between us." Talking of this caused Draco pain. "I worry about spending so much time with you, a muggle-born, knowing of the consequences if Voldemort condemns our relationship."

Although his words should have scared me, I was unafraid, and thought only about comforting him. Once again, I was acting in a way completely opposite to what was expected of a Muggle-born coming into contact with a Death Eater.

We were interrupted by the arrival of B'loody Mary.

"Ebony, meet B'loody Mary," he introduced. "B'loody Mary, meet Ebony."

"It's nice to finally meet you," she greeted.

After Draco and B'loody Mary left to go hunting, I went to class. Without him there, I seriously considered ditching the rest of the day but didn't want to make things any more difficult for him than they already are. I realized that if I ditched, others will assume I was with him and, if things should go wrong later, suspicion would fall on him.

In flying, Vampire was feeling friendly towards me again.

"I'm not going to London now," I told him.

"Are you going to the dance with Draco?" he asked.

"No, that's not the case. I'll be studying."

"Will he be involved in your plans?"

"No, he isn't."

"Oh," he said, sounding relieved. "You should come to the dance with rest of the group anyway. We can all dance with you."

"Sorry, I'm not going to the dance."

He looked sad.


	7. Chapter 7

I found a note on the door of my room once I arrived there at the end of the day. It was from Draco, and it read: "be safe."

That evening, I talked to Dumbledore.

"I'm not going to London after all," I told him.

"That's fine, dear. Have a nice weekend."

I didn't tell him I would be spending Saturday with Draco. Not that I need to—teachers shouldn't get involved with their students' romantic lives.

Wound up and nervous about tomorrow, I had to keep reminding myself that Draco wanted me to be safe. All this was my choice. I realized that I was worried about what would happen if things ended badly, but I was incapable of distancing myself from him.

Unable to sleep, I slit my wrists. That sent me into a deep slumber.

I woke up early to get dressed. I put on a black corset, a black miniskirt and black combat boots. When I was fully enrobed I heard a door knock. It was obviously Draco. I opened the door. He was wearing a black MCR t-shirt, black pants and combat boots. We looked alike.

"I was thinking we could hike today," he suggested.

I didn't feel like doing that. "No thanks, I would rather do something less physical. Also, I told Dumbledore I'm not going to London. Nobody knows where I'm going or who I'm with."

"Just don't get in trouble. That's all."

We walked to the Forbidden Forest. Draco took off his shirt. I felt that he was too perfect to want to be with me.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"You're too perfect for me!" I exclaimed.

"It's okay! I really like you!" he said.

Then we did it for the first time.

After we did it we had a discussion. Draco said, "At first I was angry when you came to town. You were this unexpected demon sent to torment me. I had never had a reaction to anyone like I did to you. I was angry because if I failed to resist killing you filthy mudblood, it would ruin the lives the teenage Death Eaters had at Hogwarts. Part of why I can resist you now is that I know you as a person, but if I had met you alone in a dark alley, it would have been different."

"I have never fallen in love with anyone but you," I said, tracing my fingers along his arms and face.

"Stay still," he warned. He brought his face close to my neck and rested his head on my chest.

When we left the forest, Draco gave me a ride on his broomstick. He traveled so fast that I was dizzy and almost motion sick. When we were on the ground again, he kissed me. We walked back to the castle. He told me about his family.

"I was the first member of my father Lucian's family. He changed my mother Narcissa soon after. Darkness was brought into the family in the hope that she would be to me what Narcissa was to Lucian. My father did this to apologize for nearly killing her in the Chamber of Secrets when she was in her first year. Our intended relationship didn't happen. She eventually found Dracula.

"B'loody Mary and Diablo came to the Malfoy family in a different way. Neither was made by Lucian. Diablo is a distant cousin of mine. He doesn't remember how he became a Death Eater. The same goes for his girlfriend B'loody Mary. Though it was possible to create Muggle-born Death eaters under rare circumstances, nobody knows why or how she woke up one day with a Dark Mark. She's very similar to me in her intelligence, though we are practically opposites purity-wise."

By this point in the conversation, we had reached the Great Hall. We ate dinner quickly. After the meal we went upstairs to my dorm. I had a shower while Draco waited.

"It appears to be getting easier for you to be so close to me," I mentioned once I was back.

"It's not necessarily easier; I'm just finding the strength to cope better. It will be harder again tomorrow when I get away from you for a time."

"You can stay the night."

"Yeah, I'm your prisoner," he claimed. "There's a range of new emotions I am experiencing as a result of falling in love with you. Jealousy is the most painful, particularly with so many boys and teachers at school having lustful thoughts about you."

"I feel jealous towards Darkness. She was meant for you."

"There can be no competition between you two."

"I agree. I can never be as attractive as her."

"Yeah right." There was silence from a lack of words. "What should we do now?"

"I want to know more about you. How often do you drink blood?"

"Only when I absolutely need it. Just because I'm a vampire, it does not mean I can't eat human food. For instance, I love Count Chocula cereal."

As I had with so much of the information he had told me, I took these latest revelations completely calmly. I was happy to move straight on to another question, but I didn't have the chance.

"Now, go to bed. You have many days ahead of you for questions."

I couldn't resist making one more very personal comment. "I haven't had a physical relationship with anyone other than you."

"That's nice to know. Now sleep, because I'm planning to go to my house tomorrow and I'm bringing you." He left my room.

After breakfast the next day we met at the fireplace in the common room.

"We're going to Malfoy Manor so my family could meet you. It's quite away far out in Wiltshire County, so we're transporting there by floo powder," Draco explained. He produced the powder and threw it in the lit hearth. The flames turned emerald green.

"Get in," he instructed. We did so together. "Malfoy Manor!" he stated the destination.


	8. Chapter 8

The next thing I knew, I was looking at the parlour of a luxurious mansion.

"Hello!" greeted a blond couple as we stepped out of the fireplace. I was just about sure they were Draco's parents.

"I'm glad to meet you," I proclaimed.

"Hi Ebony, I'm Lucius, Draco's father," introduced the man.

"And I'm Narcissa, Draco's mother," announced the woman.

B'loody Mary raced down the stairs. She moved up close to me and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"I'm glad you could make it," she commented happily.

I saw Diablo at the top of the stairs. He waved at me. I waved back.

Draco and I plopped down on a couch.

"Most people in my family appreciate your presence. The exceptions are Darkness and Dracula. She's jealous of you because you are not a Death Eater and she doesn't like being one. Dracula thinks I'm crazy, but he's trying to convince her being one of us is a valuable privilege."

We went on a tour of the house. There was plenty of roomy space. A portrait of a house elf hanged in the hallway.

"That's Dobby, our former servant. Unlike most other house-elves, he wanted to be freed. He knew of my father's plans to re-open the Chamber of Secrets using Tom Riddle's school diary for months before it happened.

"During my second year, Dobby appeared at the Dursley family's house where Harry lived and attempted to discourage him from returning to Hogwarts. When it was insisted Potter would not return to Hogwarts, Diablo—then known as Ron—and his twin brothers Fred and George Weasley rescued him with a flying muggle invention called a car. Dobby later tried to keep Harry away from Hogwarts by sealing off the entrance to Platform 9¾, but Harry and Ron foiled that plot by flying the car back to school.

"After returning from the Chamber of Secrets, Harry eventually tricked Lucius into setting Dobby free."

Draco walked me to his room to tell me about his father's history. "Lucius was a school governor of Hogwarts before he was sacked. He has very close connections at the Ministry of Magic. To maintain his reputation and influence, he makes donations to the Ministry, to charity, and to St Mungo's Hospital. He was educated at Hogwarts, where he was a prefect in Slytherin House."

"Just before my second year at Hogwarts, Lucius planted Tom Riddle's diary in Ginny's—or Darkness'—potions cauldron while she was shopping for school supplies at Flourish & Blotts, in a plot to use her to reopen the Chamber of Secrets, which would lead to attacks on Muggle-born students. He knew the diary was cleverly enchanted, but was not aware that it contained a part of Voldemort's soul. He intended to use the opening of the Chamber of Secrets by Ginny to discredit her father, Arthur Weasley, and Dumbledore.

"Lucius' plans were ultimately thwarted with the help of Dobby and Harry, but not before the Chamber were opened. He used the ensuing terror and threats to attack their families to influence the school's Board of Governors to discredit and dismiss Dumbledore as Headmaster. Subsequently, Harry tricked him into setting Dobby free. Upon this, he attempted to attack Harry with his wand but Dobby disarmed him before he can do any harm. Lucius was ultimately stripped of his title as a Hogwarts school governor. Despite his sacking, he still maintains strong ties with the Ministry of Magic."

After Draco's narrative I looked around the room. I was overwhelmed by the amount of music CDs. As I looked at his CD collection, I realized that he was not concentrating on me.

"In revealing all my family secrets to you I feel so much more than the relief I expected. Knowing that you know everything now has made me happy. But I'm still expecting you to run screaming."

"That's nice to know," I told him.

B'loody Mary and Diablo walked by.

"It's time for lunch," she announced. "We're having sandwiches today."

We made our way to the dining room. Everyone sat down on their seats and began to eat their food.

"Let's play quidditch after lunch," B'loody Mary suggested during the meal. "Ebony could come."

"I don't want to play," I pointed out.

"You can watch. It's getting cold, so you'd better go back to the castle and change."

When the noon meal was done Draco took me to the fireplace to transport me to Hogwarts.

"Slytherin common room!" he demanded. We were conveyed to where he said so. I went into my room while Draco sat on a chair waiting. I put on my black hooded trench coat.

When I came out, Cornelia walked into the common room. Draco left. I invited my visitor to come inside my dorm room.

"Stay away from the Malfoys," Cornelia warned.

"I know what they are. They haven't broken any rules. You should mind your own business. Just don't say anything to Dumbledore."

After he left Dumbledore came.

"I spent the day at Draco's house," I let him know. "He's my boyfriend."

He seemed surprise at first, but said "Ok."

Draco walked up to us. "We're going to play quidditch," he told Dumbledore. "I will have her home early."

Draco and I went outside to the quidditch field. As soon as the storm started, the Malfoys began their game. I watched alongside Narcissa.

The game was very spirited and physical. Thunder covered the intense noise of our game. Suddenly, B'loody Mary screamed. Her eyes rolled up as she was having a vision of the future.

"Voldemort is coming with Snaketail and Bellatrix!" she yelled.

"We can't outrun them," Lucius informed us. "So we have to act like nothing odd is happening. Keep on playing."

As the visiting Death Eaters emerged from the forest, they appeared less sophisticated and more wild and animalistic than the Malfoys. They were wearing black cloaks, wore high heeled shoes, and walked in a predatory manner, always on edge and prepared to attack. Their mannerisms and stance could be likened to that of cats.


	9. Chapter 9

"I'm Voldemort," the man with no nose and red eyes introduced himself. I never imagined I could ever meet the evil Dark Lord.

"My name is Snaketail," said the fat guy who killed Cedric.

"And I'm Bellatrix," said the woman.

"We're the Malfoy clan of Death Eaters," Lucius introduced us. "I'm Lucius. This is my wife Narcissa. Here are the kids: Dracula, Darkness, Diablo, B'loody Mary, Draco, and Ebony."

"So we meet again, my darling sister Cissy," the insane-looking Bellatrix said to Narcissa. "Since I was evicted from Azkaban, I couldn't find a new home. So I've been traveling around with these two wonderful gentlemen. It's a luxury for you to live in a mansion and for these kids to live at school. We're truly shocked. Let us pay a visit to your Malfoy Manor."

The trio suddenly ganged up on us, with Snaketail being the most ferocious.

"I smell a filthy mudblood!" Snaketail remarked, dropping to a hunting stance. Draco echoed this posture in a move to protect me. They both snarled.

"I don't think the Malfoys would have a mudblood in their midst that they do not intend on killing," Voldemort expressed.

Lucius walked Voldemort's gang into the Great Hall with Diablo, Darkness and Narcissa. Draco, B'loody Mary and Dracula took me to a car.

Once we were in the blue Ford Anglia, Draco started the engine and it began flying. B'loody Mary sat in the front seat while Dracula sat beside me in the back. Everyone had their seat belts fastened except for me.

"I want to stay here," I demanded, trying to open the door to escape the subcompact vehicle. The door was locked. Dracula held my hands and strapped me to my seat to stop me from running away. "I am afraid of what Dumbledore will say or do if I failed to return from my evening with you. He might expel us from Hogwarts. Stop," I pleaded.

"Yeah, we should be staying at school," supported B'loody Mary.

"The reason we are escaping is that Snaketail wants to kill Ebony. He knows we are spending our time with a muggle-born. He'll stop at nothing until he catches her," Draco explained.

That was a disturbing revelation. "But Snaketail could invade the school and kill Dumbledore!" I countered.

"She's right," agreed B'loody Mary.

"Oh…" He looked like he changed his mind for a second. "But I will not return to Hogwarts."

"Come on, we can go beat Snaketail up," Dracula suggested.

"As far as I'm concerned, if we return to Hogwarts we will have to kill him and possibly the other two," Draco said.

"There's another option," B'loody Mary interrupted.

"Shut up!" he yelled, losing his temper.

"Calm down," I told him.

"Ebony, do you have any good ideas?" Dracula encouraged.

"Draco does have a good reason to be angry," B'loody Mary sympathized.

"I have a plan," I began. "I want to return to Hogwarts briefly to tell Dumbledore I want to leave and return to Dubai with you guys. In doing this we can protect him from Snaketail. Draco can then take us wherever he likes."

"Fine, but no one else can't come with us when we leave again. Only I can accompany you, Ebony," Draco insisted.

"But I want to go too," B'loody Mary requested.

"Draco, if you are with me, Dumbledore will get suspicious about your links to my disappearance. Snaketail will know that we are together," I reasoned.

"Fine, you can leave with B'loody Mary and Diablo while I remain at Hogwarts for another few days to ensure that Dumbledore does not get suspicious and to lead Snaketail on a wild goose chase," Draco accepted. "When I am certain he is completely off your trail, I will meet you in Dubai where you will take a place of your own rather than go to your family's house."

"That's a good plan," Dracula approved. "It gives us time to get rid of Snaketail without her being at risk."

"Be careful," Draco cautioned me as we drove back into Hogwarts. "I will hold you personally responsible if anything happens to you."

Diablo was observing us from the ground when we arrived there.

"I would truly appreciate it if you could do us a favour," Draco said to Diablo. "Take the girls to Dubai. Are you okay with that?"

"Sure thing, dude. I could do that," Diablo replied.

"And B'loody Mary, keep your opinions to yourself," Draco told my friend.

Dracula and B'loody Mary stayed in the car while Draco took me to the Slytherin common room. Dumbledore was there.

"Hey Dumbledore, can I talk to you for a second?" I asked.

"Sure. What is it?"

"I really miss my home in Dubai. Ron, Hermione and I want to take some time off next week for a visit there. Is that okay?" I explained.

"Yes, you may," he accepted.

"Thank you very much," I appreciated.

Draco and I packed my belongings very quickly. We ran to the Ford with my duffle bag.

We apparated ourselves to the Malfoy Manor. There was really no need to drive; the only reason we were in a car was to look cool.

When the car was parked next to the curb near the house, Narcissa unlocked the front door with a spell. "Alohamora!"

The four of us opened the portal and walked in. I was surprised to see Voldemort having an early dinner with the Malfoys.

"Colloportus!" she said as soon as we were in. That spell sealed all openings in the building, including doors and windows. "We need to keep everything locked in case any bad guys break in," she explained. "Help yourself to some steak," she offered.

"Snaketail has become the leader of the Death Eaters. For now I am not his boss," Voldemort filled us in, chewing his food. "He is the deadliest and most clever Death Eater I have ever met. He lives for the hunt and the thrill of killing any wizard or witch who is not a pureblood. But I will not fight for either him or you Malfoys. I will avoid the situation and go to check things out at Durmstrang."


End file.
